Russia has no plans to invade Ukraine but the Kremlin will respect the result of the upcoming referendum in Ukraine's Crimea region, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said.

Speaking after several hours of talks in London with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Lavrov there was still no common vision with the West over Ukraine and that Russia needed no international structure to help it mediate with Kiev.

Kerry also revealed that Russian President Vladimir Putin will make no decision about the future of Ukraine until after the referendum on Crimea's future.

Scroll down for video

Sergey Lavrov said Russia has no plans to attack Ukraine after talks with US Secretary of State John Kerry in Downing Street today but said the two countries share 'no common vision' on the crisis

Kerry confirmed Russia will not make a decision on Ukraine's future until after a referendum on Sunday when Crimean citizens are expected to back becoming part of Russia

Kerry said he had raised concerns over troop movements during six hours of talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in London aimed at reducing tensions ahead of the vote in Crimea on March 16.

'Neither we nor the international community will recognise the results of this referendum and we also remain deeply concerned about the large deployments of Russian forces in Crimea and along the eastern border,' he added.

'Right now, given this particular climate, we really need to hear more declarative policy in order to make clear where Russia is proceeding with respect to these troops and these exercises.'

Kerry said the Kremlin's next steps would depend on a final decision that Russian President Vladimir Putin would take after the referendum.

'The Foreign Minister made it clear that President Putin is not prepared to make any decision regarding Ukraine until after the referendum on Sunday,' Kerry said.

'We believe the referendum is contrary to the constitution of Ukraine, contrary to international law, is in violation of that law, and is illegitimate,' he said.

The news comes as Ukrainian troops
prepared for a possible attack by Russian forces by carrying out drills
and firing rocket launchers near the capital.

The moves were in response to fears that the Kremlin could move its military deeper into Ukraine after a pro-Russian protester was killed overnight in Donetsk. Officials said that Russia would uphold its right to defend all its citizens in the country.

Kerry, pictured with Lavrov on the lawn of the US ambassador's residence, London, has said America will reject the result of any referendum

Lavrov said the talks were 'useful' but refused to say how Russia will act until after the Crimean referendum

So far Russian troops have only occupied key parts of the Crimea region, where they have a naval base, but Donetsk is 400 miles to the east.

Speaking to reporters after a talks with US Secretary of State in London today, Mr Lavrov said: 'We will respect the expression of the will of the Crimean people in in the upcoming referendum.

'The Russian Federation does not and cannot have any plans to invade the southeastern regions of Ukraine.'

Sunday's vote on Crimea - Ukraine's strategic Black Sea peninsula of 2 million people - is widely expected to back secession and, potentially, annexation with Russia.

The new government in Kiev believes the vote is illegal, but Moscow says it does not recognize the new government as legitimate.

The U.S. and EU say the Crimean vote violates Ukraine's constitution and international law. If Crimea votes to secede, the U.S. and European Union plan to slap sanctions as early as Monday on Russian officials and businesses accused of escalating the crisis and undermining Ukraine's new government.

Lavrov on Friday reaffirmed that Russia will 'respect the results of the referendum' in Crimea and said sanctions would harm relations.

'Our partners also realize that sanctions are counterproductive,' he said.

European and U.S. leaders have repeatedly urged Moscow to pull back its troops in Crimea and stop encouraging local militias there who are hyping the vote as a choice between re-establishing generations of ties with Russia or returning to echoes of fascism from Ukraine's World War II era, when some residents cooperated with Nazi occupiers.

Earlier today it was revealed that the EU has drawn up a list of 120 Russian military figures it will hit with asset freezes and visa restrictions if US-led sanctions go ahead.

Near the Ukranian capital of Kiev soldiers loyal to the new government took part in military drills today

The practice drills took place as the Kremlin said it would protect its citizens across Ukraine following the death of a pro-Russian protestor overnight in Donetsk

The five-page list was drawn up by diplomats with experience in Russia and was supplied to EU officials in Brussels, who will discuss the names and whittle the list down ahead of a foreign ministers' meeting on Monday.

The list represents the first concrete action against Russia by Europe, who until now have been more hesitant to issue sanctions compared with America, in part because of Russian investment in Europe.

Speaking before the talks, John Kerry said he hoped the discussions would come up with a solution to 'resolve some of the differences between us' as he welcomed Lavrov to the US Ambassador's residence in Regent's Park.

However, Lavrov appeared to dash those hopes by saying there was 'no common vision' between the two countries, although he added the discussion had been 'useful'.

So far Russian forces have only occupied positions in Crimea, where the country has a naval base

The city of Donetsk, where the activist was stabbed to death, is 400 miles to the east of Crimea

As the country slips towards conflict, Lavrov insisted that talks with John Kerry had been 'useful'

Politicians and officials in Moscow could be hit with asset freezes and travel bans if a referendum goes ahead in Crimea on Sunday over whether to break away from Ukraine in favour of joining the Russian Federation.

Mr Kerry said: 'Obviously we have a lot to talk about and look forward to an opportunity to dig in to the issues and possibilities that we may be able to find about how to move forward together to resolve some of the differences between us.

'We look forward, I know, to a good conversation.'

As politicians in Crimea seek closer ties with Russia, revolutionaries in Kiev want a better relationship with the European Union.

A small group of Ukrainian protesters
with posters reading 'NATO Save Ukraine' awaited Kerry as he arrived at
Downing Street for a meeting with Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron
and Foreign Secretary William Hague ahead of his talks with Lavrov.

Cameron
underlined the threat of sanctions when he sat down with Kerry, telling
him that 'we want to see progress as much as you do.'

Before meeting with Mr Lavrov, Mr Kerry spoke with David Cameron and William Hague as it was revealed the EU has drawn up a list of 120 Russians to potentially be hit with sanctions

The talks take place as yet more troops and vehicles have been landed in Crimea, it has been reported

'We
want to see Ukrainians and the Russians talking to each other. And if
they don't then there are going to have to be consequences,' he added.

Kerry thanked his British hosts for their strong position, saying that 'we're all hoping that we don't get pushed into a place where we have to do all this. But we'll see what happens.'

However as military tensions increase, a diplomatic solution to the crisis looks increasingly unlikely.

Today Serbian paramilitaries wearing a black flag with a skull on their sleeves were helping Russian soldiers check traffic along the busy road linking the regional capital of Simferopol and the naval port of Sevastopol.

Bratislav Zivkovic, one of the commanders of Serbia's Chetnik movement, an ultranationalist force, said it was only natural for them to come to Crimea to help their Russian brethren.

Earlier this morning soldiers and an armoured vehicle were spotted landing on the peninsula from Russian boat Yamal 156, which is capable of carrying over 300 troops and up to a dozen vehicles.

Kerry and Lavrov have spoken almost daily as the Ukraine crisis has unfolded but have yet to find any common ground.

Ultranationalist Serbian paramilitaries have been spotted completing traffic stops alongside Russian soldiers in Crimea in scenes reminiscent of the Balkans in the 1990s

Kerry has warned Russian against deliberately provoking anti-European sentiment in Crimea, as the upcoming referendum is being presented as a choice between historic Russian ties and European fascism

At the Senate hearing, Kerry said Moscow should expect the U.S. and European Union to take measures against it on Monday if Russia accepts and acts on a decision by Crimea to secede from Ukraine.

The U.S. and EU say the vote Sunday violates Ukraine's constitution and international law. Russia has said it will respect the results of the referendum.

In another show of support for Ukraine's sovereignty, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden met with Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk on Thursday, a day after the new prime minister met with President Barack Obama.

The White House said Biden told Yatsenyuk that the U.S. 'stands firmly behind Ukraine and the Ukrainian people in ensuring Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity.'

Obama has imposed limited sanctions against unidentified Russian officials thought by the U.S. to be directly involved in destabilizing Ukraine.

But Congress on Thursday put off a vote that would have expanded those sanctions, as well as approving $1billion in loan guarantees to Ukraine and International Monetary Fund revisions to help Kiev.

The Senate won't vote on the measure until March 24 at the earliest, when lawmakers return from a week-long recess, while House Republicans are pushing their own Ukraine aid bill that includes no Russia sanctions or IMF provisions.

Sen. John McCain sharply criticized fellow Republicans for not acting 'when the people of Ukraine are crying out for our help.'